Here's where the story takes an unexpected turn: the good Samaritan was originally taking a different route. His wife and mother-in-law questioned why he chose that particular path. Moments later they were faced with the very real possibility that a man could die in front of them...or this man could lose HIS life in front of his family trying to save someone else.
As we were conducting the interview I noticed one of their sons. The thought he could be on the autism spectrum flitted in my brain and right back out again. When you're pregnant, suddenly everyone is pregnant. It's the same thing when you have a child with a diagnosis or a disease, I imagine...you tend to notice it more in others. Anyway, I chatted with her in my 8th grade Spanish and it turns out their son is part of what brought them to the states from Venezuela. They have very little in the way of services and therapy for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder, much less for their families. Mom told me they're desperate for any help.
Soooo why are you starting your little blog with this anecdote, you might be asking? Sometimes our paths don't head in the direction we intend. If you allow yourself a moment of reflection, you might discover it's exactly where you need to be. I was the reporter assigned to cover this reunion of a stranger with the man whose life was saved. I just happen to have a year of therapies and seminars and IEPs and classes and meetings and sleepless nights under my belt ON autism. I forwarded some information to her before I wrote my script for our story.
I'm so grateful that our paths crossed and this family might get something on their vacation that can truly last a lifetime. Help.
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